Color management refers to the process of associating abstract representations of colors with actual representations of colors as they are displayed on various devices. For example, in an image file containing a digital representation of a given object, respective sequences of binary digits may be assigned to represent various colors appearing in the image. The number of bits in the binary digits that represent the colors determine how many colors can be represented in the image. For example, assuming eight bits are allocated to storing color data in a given image file, the file can represent 28, or 256 different colors. Further, the sequence 00h may represent a given shade of red, while the sequence 01h may represent a different shade of red, and so on.
In any event, the sequences are mere numbers devoid of any meaning, unless the numbers are mapped to corresponding color spaces by a color profile. Different devices or types of devices may be associated with different color spaces or color profiles. For example, display devices such as computer monitors or other cathode-ray tube (CRT) devices emit color as Red-Green-Blue (RGB) light, which is an additive color space. Printers or other devices that produced color output on inked paper typically use subtractive color spaces, such as Cyan-Magenta-Yellow-Black (CMYK) inks.
As an example, a color image file may be displayed on a CRT using an additive RGB color space. However, if that color image file is to be printed in a given color printer, the color printer would typically use a subtractive CMYK color space. Thus, it becomes appropriate to map the numerical values that define colors in the RGB color space for display on the CRT, to other colors in the CMYK color space for printing. This mapping or conversion process is one example of color management.